The vaccination program was rolled out at seven elementary schools simultaneously. Other schools in Bukittinggi will start vaccinations in February, officials said.
Thursday's event, which was hosted at Bukittinggi Belakang Balok 09 Elementary School, was attended by several members of the SKPD, regional leadership coordination forum, and fully supported by health workers from various hospitals, they added.
Special adjustments have been made to get children interested in participating in the program, Mayor of Bukittinggi, Erman Safar, said.
"Children are generally not afraid of being vaccinated, they are just afraid of (the needles). Thus, we are providing entertainment by distributing gifts and dispatching vaccinators wearing (costumes of characters)," he informed.
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Children will be accompanied by their parents or guardians for vaccinations, he noted. If any of them suffer from congenital disease and have a doctor's certificate to prove it, their vaccination will be postponed, he added.
The Sinovac and Coronavac vaccines are being used for the program, with smaller doses in a ratio of 1:10 provided to children, he informed.
After seven schools on the first day, vaccination programs would be hosted in 68 other schools in Bukittinggi city, he said.
"We are targeting all 13 thousand students to complete (vaccination) and we are trying to complete this in February; after 28 days, we will continue with the second vaccination," he informed.
Meanwhile, Bukittinggi Police chief, Adjunct Senior Commissioner Dody Prawiranegara, said that children need to get vaccinated to strengthen their immune systems.
The vaccinators were able to adapt to the students' psyche during Thursday's drive, so the children were able to overcome their fears of vaccination or needles, he added.
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Translator: Miko Elfisha, Mecca Yumna
Editor: Suharto
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